Alejandra (Alex) Caniffi

Family and Community Mediation, Conflict coach, and French/Spanish Interpreterin Toronto, Ontario, Canada

BIO Alejandra

Having practiced law in my country of origin for more than 15 years, I decided that litigation procedures were becoming more expensive for a vast majority of people, and it became less and less cost- effective for anyone that would want to access the judicial system.

There are highly emotional costs invested in going to courts, when sometimes there is no real need to clog the system if we could de-escalate and negotiate a good agreement in a non adversarial way, where every party involved could look at win-win situations. Looking for better ways to serve my clients, I found my way to mediation through courses provided by mediators educated at the Palo Alto University in California. In 1996, I became a certified mediator for the Argentinean Ministry of Justice (Registration #3287).

By that time, I was working on Commercial and Family Mediation. I also worked with the Argentinean Mandatory Mediation Program, as a pre-judicial system, and in my private practice. I complemented my practice learning coaching methods (1997-1998), and taking coaching seminars. I also took Neuro-linguistics courses and communication. Later on, I became a coach myself while continuing my mediation practice. I was a mediator for many years before coming to Ontario with my family.

Here, I took new courses about interpersonal dispute resolution, first as a community mediator at the Saint Stephen house, -in Toronto- and worked as a mediator for a community mediation service in Mississauga. At that time I was also working as an Interpreter (French/Spanish) for a company in the GTA.

In 2012/13, I returned to Family and Divorce mediation, and did my studies at the University of Waterloo, Conrad Grebel University College, with Barbara Landau among others. I practised and worked as an intern mediator for the family mediation services the Brampton Courts. Nowadays I also deliver the MIP’s or Mandatory Information Program for the courts in Brampton.

Family mediation comes as a natural result for my inclination to contribute to peace and dialogue in the family, and in the community. Always involved in education, - teaching languages and Civics- I’m aware that communities work well when we actively listen to conflict, seize the opportunity and commit to solve them.

I speak and write in Spanish, French and English. I’m a certified as a French-Spanish translator. I understand and speak some Italian.